Connelly: The control of the House runs through Washington's 8th District

Dr. Shannon Hader was Director of Global HIV/TB at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, before leaving to come home to Auburn, Wash., and run for Congress. "I'm the only candidate with a lifetime of making federal people, federal policy and federal dollars work." (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Dr. Shannon Hader was Director of Global HIV/TB at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, before leaving to come home to Auburn, Wash., and run for Congress. "I'm the only candidate with a lifetime

Dr. Shannon Hader was Director of Global HIV/TB at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, before leaving to come home to Auburn, Wash., and run for Congress. "I'm the only candidate with a lifetime of making federal people, federal policy and federal dollars work." (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Dr. Shannon Hader was Director of Global HIV/TB at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, before leaving to come home to Auburn, Wash., and run for Congress. "I'm the only candidate with a lifetime

Republican Dino Rossi, formidable from three statewide races, is cultivating the grass roots of the district's country clubs, with a succession of fundraisers with such groups as contractors and home builders.

Three Democrats are vying to face him, all of them first-time candidates. As in the Golden State, Washington has a top-two primary. It will be Rossi against whichever Democrat emerges from an August primary, held at a time when this state usually tunes out politics.

The Dems were displaying their wares at a Wednesday morning forum sponsored by NARAL Pro-Choice America.

Don't labor under a misconception: All three Democrats are strongly pro-choice. Rossi is pro-life in his personal views, but rarely brings up the subject. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., is the Washington delegation's outspoken abortion foe, having repeatedly attacked Planned Parenthood.

But the Democrats are very different people. Here is what was displayed Wednesday:

--Dr. Shannon Hader has feet planted in her Auburn hometown, while at the same time emphasizing that she was responsible for a $2.4 billion budget at the director of Global HIV and TB at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"My team contributed to 2.2 million HIV-free babies born around the world," said Hader. She was referring to a program, the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, that enjoyed broad bipartisan support.

Her credentials, Hader summed up: "I am the only candidate who has spent a lifetime making federal people, federal policy and federal dollars work." As well, she promised to bring to the table a knowledge of health programs the Trump Administration seeks to undermine.

"I know what to ask, where to ask, and where the bodies are buried," said Hader. Not a single woman physician, let alone a public health doctor, serves in Congress.

--Dr. Kim Schrier, a pediatrician who has practiced in Issaquah for 16 years, is a sharp critic of abortion foes, as well as pharmacists who refuse to dispense "morning after" pills. She is unrelenting in support of individual choice, even having asked parents to leave when she treated daughters.

"There is no place for government or anyone else's religion in my examination room," said Schrier. She took a poke at the Catholic Church for its opposition to contraception and abortion, saying: "It is appalling to think of one religion in this country hijacking the health agenda."

She points to a record of advocacy, and could not resist a dig at the 34-year-old Rittereiser. "Back in 1987 -- were you born then? -- I was in college out there with a coat hanger protesting (Robert) Bork's nomination to the Supreme Court," said Schrier.

As one who has cared for Issaquah families over 16 years, she added, "I have my finger on the pulse of families in this district."

--Jason Rittereiser is an Issaquah attorney, former deputy King County Prosecutor, and advocate of what some call "intersectionality": It means issues such as widening income disparity, lack of a family leave policy and reproductive rights are linked to the fundamental problem of inequality in America.

He is the impatient candidate in the race, saying at one point: "If we want to relate to young people, we should send young people to Congress."

Rittereiser is campaigning as an advocate for single-player health care and a national system of paid family leave. He's a product of Ellensburg, but is outspoken in advocacy of gun regulation.

The reality of America, Rittereiser argued Wednesday, is that "very rich and powerful people have gotten ahead. Ordinary people have not."

He depicts the 8th District as home to those ordinary people, in east-southeast King County, rural Pierce County, and across the Cascades in Kittitas and Chelan Counties. In occupation, the 8th is Washington's most varied district.

The Republican is, appropriately, the elephant in the 8th District race.

It will be Republican Dino Rossi against whichever Democrat emerges from an August primary, held at a time when this state usually tunes out politics.

It will be Republican Dino Rossi against whichever Democrat emerges...

"Dino Rossi is a smooth talker," Hader said in wrapping up the debate. The rookie Democrats will face a seasoned foe with a big war chest and backing from such Republican money sources as the Club for Growth and Vice President Mike Pence's PAC.

Ilyse Hogue, head of NARAL Pro-Choice America, moderated the forum, praised the 8th District Democrats, and indicated her group will put resources into smoking out Rossi's "anti-choice" record during the fall campaign.

"We are committed to telling that story by whatever means," she said.

SeattlePI.com writer Joel Connelly can be reached at joelconnelly@seattlepi.com

Columnist Joel Connelly has written about politics for the P-I since 1973.